A preliminary discussion of gravitational physics experiments for the Spacelab era

An overview of past, present, and proposed future experiments in gravitational physics is given. These experiments are concerned with the measurement of relativistic gravity effects to test theories of gravitation. Certain experiments which could be performed on shuttle and Spacelab missions and the potential of Spacelab for gravitation physics research are discussed

First results of observations of transient pulsar SAXJ2103.5+4545 with the INTEGRAL observatory

We present preliminary results of observations of X-ray pulsar SAX J2103.5+4545 with INTEGRAL observatory in Dec 2002. Maps of this sky region in energy bands 3-10, 15-40, 40-100 and 100-200 keV are presented. The source is significantly detected up to energies of $\sim100$ keV. The hard X-ray flux in the 15-100 energy band is variable, that could be connected with the orbital phase of the binary system. We roughly reconstructed the source spectrum using its comparison to that of Crab nebula. It is shown that the parameters of the source spectrum in 18-150 keV energy range are compatible with that obtained earlier by RXTE observatoryComment: 5 pages, 4 figures, accepted for publication in the Astronomy Letter

Tumbling of polymers in semidilute solution under shear flow

The tumbling dynamics of individual polymers in semidilute solution is studied by large-scale non-equilibrium mesoscale hydrodynamic simulations. We find that the tumbling time is equal to the non-equilibrium relaxation time of the polymer end-to-end distance along the flow direction and strongly depends on concentration. In addition, the normalized tumbling frequency as well as the widths of the alignment distribution functions for a given concentration-dependent Weissenberg number exhibit a weak concentration dependence in the cross-over regime from a dilute to a semidilute solution. For semidilute solutions a universal behavior is obtained. This is a consequence of screening of hydrodynamic interactions at polymer concentrations exceeding the overlap concentration

Spin precession and alternating spin polarization in spin-3/2 hole systems

The spin density matrix for spin-3/2 hole systems can be decomposed into a sequence of multipoles which has important higher-order contributions beyond the ones known for electron systems [R. Winkler, Phys. Rev. B \textbf{70}, 125301 (2004)]. We show here that the hole spin polarization and the higher-order multipoles can precess due to the spin-orbit coupling in the valence band, yet in the absence of external or effective magnetic fields. Hole spin precession is important in the context of spin relaxation and offers the possibility of new device applications. We discuss this precession in the context of recent experiments and suggest a related experimental setup in which hole spin precession gives rise to an alternating spin polarization.Comment: 4 pages, 2 figures, to appear in Physical Review Letter

Mesoscale simulations of polymer dynamics in microchannel flows

The non-equilibrium structural and dynamical properties of flexible polymers confined in a square microchannel and exposed to a Poiseuille flow are investigated by mesoscale simulations. The chain length and the flow strength are systematically varied. Two transport regimes are identified, corresponding to weak and strong confinement. For strong confinement, the transport properties are independent of polymer length. The analysis of the long-time tumbling dynamics of short polymers yields non-periodic motion with a sublinear dependence on the flow strength. We find distinct differences for conformational as well as dynamical properties from results obtained for simple shear flow

Tunable quantum spin Hall effect in double quantum wells

The field of topological insulators (TIs) is rapidly growing. Concerning possible applications, the search for materials with an easily controllable TI phase is a key issue. The quantum spin Hall effect, characterized by a single pair of helical edge modes protected by time-reversal symmetry, has been demonstrated in HgTe-based quantum wells (QWs) with an inverted bandgap. We analyze the topological properties of a generically coupled HgTe-based double QW (DQW) and show how in such a system a TI phase can be driven by an inter-layer bias voltage, even when the individual layers are non-inverted. We argue, that this system allows for similar (layer-)pseudospin based physics as in bilayer graphene but with the crucial absence of a valley degeneracy.Comment: 9 pages, 8 figures, extended version (accepted Phys. Rev. B

Shuttle time and frequency transfer experiment

A proposed space shuttle experiment to demonstrate techniques for global high precision comparison of clocks and primary frequency standards is described. The experiment, using transmitted microwave and pulsed laser signals, compared a hydrogen maser clock onboard the space shuttle with a clock in a ground station in order to demonstrate time transfer with accuracies of 1 nsec or better and frequency comparison at the 10 to the -14th power accuracy level

Synchronous vs Asynchronous Chain Motion in α-Synuclein Contact Dynamics

α-Synuclein (α-syn) is an intrinsically unstructured 140-residue neuronal protein of uncertain function that is implicated in the etiology of Parkinson’s disease. Tertiary contact formation rate constants in α-syn, determined from diffusion-limited electron-transfer kinetics measurements, are poorly approximated by simple random polymer theory. One source of the discrepancy between theory and experiment may be that interior-loop formation rates are not well approximated by end-to-end contact dynamics models. We have addressed this issue with Monte Carlo simulations to model asynchronous and synchronous motion of contacting sites in a random polymer. These simulations suggest that a dynamical drag effect may slow interior-loop formation rates by about a factor of 2 in comparison to end-to-end loops of comparable size. The additional deviations from random coil behavior in α-syn likely arise from clustering of hydrophobic residues in the disordered polypeptide

Coulomb-induced Rashba spin-orbit coupling in semiconductor quantum wells

In the absence of an external field, the Rashba spin-orbit interaction (SOI) in a two-dimensional electron gas in a semiconductor quantum well arises entirely from the screened electrostatic potential of ionized donors. We adjust the wave functions of a quantum well so that electrons occupying the first (lowest) subband conserve their spin projection along the growth axis (Sz), while the electrons occupying the second subband precess due to Rashba SOI. Such a specially designed quantum well may be used as a spin relaxation trigger: electrons conserve Sz when the applied voltage (or current) is lower than a certain threshold V*; higher voltage switches on the Dyakonov-Perel spin relaxation.Comment: 4+ pages, 6 figure

Spin relaxation rates in quasi-one-dimensional coupled quantum dots

We study theoretically the spin relaxation rate in quasi-one-dimensional coupled double semiconductor quantum dots. We consider InSb and GaAs-based systems in the presence of the Rashba spin-orbit interaction, which causes mixing of opposite-spin states, and allows phonon-mediated transitions between energy eigenstates. Contributions from all phonon modes and coupling mechanisms in zincblende semiconductors are taken into account. The spin relaxation rate is shown to display a sharp, cusp-like maximum as function of the interdot-barrier width, at a value of the width which can be controlled by an external magnetic field. This remarkable behavior is associated with the symmetric-antisymmetric level splitting in the structure.Comment: 4 figures, Submitted to Applied Physics Letter